ITHACA, N.Y. – Although South Hill remains covered in a blanket of snow, the Ithaca College baseball team is set to begin their 2018 season this weekend with three games at Virginia Wesleyan University in Norfolk, Va. Ithaca plays a doubleheader on Saturday, followed by a single game on Sunday morning.

The Bombers, who are coming off a 30-13 campaign last spring, another Empire 8 Conference title and a third place finish in the NCAA Division III New York Regional, return 20 players to their roster this season. IC enters 2018 ranked No. 21 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and are the top team in receiving votes in the d3baseball.com preseason rankings.

Head coach George Valesente, now in his 40th season at his alma mater, is excited to see what this year's team will be able to accomplish. "We have a large crew of juniors and seniors returning this season, and the experience and leadership is a valuable item."

"A majority of our team played in the regional tournament last season and they know what it will take to return. The regional teams I've coached in the past have been determined to make amends and get back there, so it should inspire our team."

While in Virginia, the Bombers will play Brockport and Alfred State on Saturday, and Virginia Wesleyan on Sunday. IC will then take a week off before traveling to Long Island for three games against St. Joseph's on March 3-4.

The following week, the Bombers fly out west to California for their annual Spring Break trip. IC opens with Pomona-Pitzer on March 11 and then takes on Claremont-Mudd-Scripps the following afternoon. On the 13th, Ithaca faces off against the defending national champions Cal Lutheran, which is ranked No. 2, in Thousand Oaks. IC then heads to Chapman on the 14th, followed by a game at CalTech. The trip concludes with a contest at Redlands on the 16th and Occidental on the 17^th.

When the Bombers return to New York, they find themselves pitted against the nation's No. 1 team in Cortland on March 20 in Cortland. Four days later, Ithaca opens Empire 8 play with a doubleheader against Stevens on the 24th and a single game on the 25th.

A midweek game is in store for IC as the Bombers welcome 11th-ranked Oswego to Freeman Field on the 27th. Ithaca continues is stretch against nationally ranked teams to wrap up March with a three-game series at No. 24 St. John Fisher on the 30th and 31st.

Five of Ithaca's first six games in April will be played at home, beginning with Rochester on the April 3. An Empire 8 road contest is next as IC heads to Houghton for a 5 p.m. game the following even, and then returns back to South Hill for three games against Elmira on the 7th and 8th. Another tilt against Cortland is scheduled for April 10 in Ithaca to conclude the home-friendly slate.

On the 14th and 15th, IC ventures up to Utica for three contests and then welcomes Houghton for a twin bill on the 18th. Oneonta will make the trek to Ithaca on the 19th for a non-conference matchup, before Ithaca heads to the North Country for a three-game series with Canton.

The regular season ends with eight games in 10 days as Ithaca goes to Oswego on the April 24 and Rochester on the 25th. RIT will visit Ithaca on the 28th for a 12 p.m. first pitch, and then the Bombers play Brockport at 3:30 p.m. IC matches up with Alfred State on the 29th. In May, Ithaca plays New Paltz on the 1st, St. Lawrence on the 2nd and Wells on the 3rd.

The Empire 8 Tournament is slated for May 10-13 at the regular season champion's home field. Regional play will begin the following weekend.

"I believe we have a challenging schedule this season with our trip to California as well as eight games against NCAA Regional qualifiers (Cortland, Oswego, St. John Fisher and RIT) last season," stated Valesente.

Below is a breakdown of the 2018 baseball team.

PITCHING STAFF

Ithaca's strength this season will undoubtedly be its pitching staff, which was a question mark last spring, with the departure of nearly every arm that logged a significant amount of innings in 2016.

Junior Jake Binder proved to be the ace of the staff last season as he posted a 9-1 record and a 2.90 ERA in 77.2 innings pitched. Binder recorded three complete games over 12 starts and held opponents to a .245 batting average.

Senior Tyler Hill returns to the staff for IC after missing last season due to injury. In 2016, Hill logged a team-high 81.2 innings and a 3.31 ERA with a 5-7 record. His return solidifies a true four-man rotation for IC.

Senior Jack Morello went 2-2 last spring in 48.2 innings pitched with a 3.33 ERA. Morello fanned 35 batters and boasted an opponent's batting average of .211.

Junior transfer Emmett Dunn joins the staff after previously pitching at St. Lawrence last year. While a member of the Saints program, Dunn went 3-2 with a 4.79 ERA in 41.1 innings of work.

Senior Robby Buffis will look to make a transition to the bullpen after starting 10 games last year. Buffis went 6-2 in 63.2 innings and finished the campaign with a 4.62 ERA.

The bullpen will also be deep for IC in 2018 as five main hurlers return.

Junior Webb Little, also a lethal bat in the lineup, notched a 1.69 ERA in seven appearances to go along with four saves.

Senior Chris Marinaccio garnered the team's lowest opponent batting average at .169, as he surrendered just 14 hits in 24 innings. Marinaccio went 3-0 with a 2.25 ERA in 13 appearances.

Junior Andrew Bailey and sophomore Tom Cosentino each tossed in a team-best 16 games last spring. Bailey, who will also work as a designated hitter in the lineup, went 4-4 on the mound in 37 innings with three saves. Bailey batted .347 in 121 at bats and 27 runs scored in 2017.

Cosentino fired 35.2 innings with two saves and a 1-0 record.

Junior Matt Eiel came on late last season, which resulted in him being named to the New York Regional All-Tournament Team. Eiel appeared in 10 contests and tossed 21 innings with a 1-0 ledger and a save.

Sophomore Christian LaLomia will also see some time out of the pen, as he threw in seven contests and recorded a win.

Sophomore transfer Trevor Rumsey is a new arm for the Bombers this season after spending 2017 at St. John Fisher. With the Cardinals, Rumsey hurled 12.2 innings over 10 appearances and finished with a 4.26 ERA.

Freshman Jack Lynch could also see some time on the bump in his rookie season.

OUTFIELD

The entire starting outfield for the Bombers from each of the past two seasons is back to roam again.

Senior Domenic Boresta and juniors Matt Carey and Sam Little have combined to start 213 games since 2016.

S. Little, an anchor in the middle of the lineup, hit .347 last year with seven homeruns, 42 runs scored and 42 RBI. He has also recorded 10 outfield assists over the past two seasons from his right field position.

Boresta ranked fourth on the team with a .323 average as he notched 43 hits and scored 29 runs. Carey led the outfield with seven assists last campaign and swung at a .262 clip at the plate with 25 RBI and seven doubles.

Junior Garrett Snyder played in 10 games last year and posted a .313 average with a double and three runs scored.

Freshman Garrett Callaghan could see some action this year and adds a lefty bat to the lineup. Lynch could also play in the middle infield when he's not called on to pitch.

INFIELD

The one place that Ithaca will need to experiment with early on in the season is its infield, as three starters departed due to graduation – Ryan Henchey, Josh Savacool and Trevor Thompson.

W. Little is the lone starter returning at first base. He produced 53 hits for a .321 average last spring, to go along with 41 runs and 12 doubles.

Juniors Cam Fuoti and Jake Generali, and sophomore Marco Fontana have jumped out as potential starters to begin the season.

Fuoti, a third baseman, saw action in 10 games and hit .357 with two RBI. Generali will play second for the Bombers after he drove in three runs in 20 at bats last season. Fontana played on Ithaca's JV team last year.

Juniors John Peterson and Jackson Smith add depth at first base and could slide in to DH for the Bombers. Peterson hit .265 with four doubles and six RBI, while Smith had eight at bats with a hit and run scored.

Senior Nick Skerpon played in three games last season and will battle for time at second.

CATCHERS

A rarity in baseball is to have a catcher start every contest over a grueling 43-game slate. That's exactly what the Bombers possess in junior Adam Gallagher.

As a sophomore, Gallagher was one of four Bombers to start all 43 games. He finished the year with a .309 average with 50 hits, 34 RBI and 26 runs scored. Gallagher was also perfect in stolen bases, going 8-for-8, and he smacked three homeruns.

Sophomores Andrew Wollner and Chris Dietz will add depth at the position. Wollner appeared in six games last spring and had one hit in three trips to the plate. Dietz was on the JV squad in 2017.